Every POS demo looks good when the salesperson is driving. The real test is a rainy Friday with a new starter on the till, a delivery driver waiting and the card terminal refusing to connect.

This checklist focuses on what determines whether a system helps or hinders your team after the contract is signed.

Orders and menu

  • Can one order flow handle counter, phone, website and delivery orders?
  • How are modifiers, combos and menu availability managed at busy times?
  • Can you stop selling an item instantly across every channel?
  • How long does a menu change take, and who can make it?

Kitchen and service

  • Does the kitchen display show timing and priority, not just a list?
  • What happens to tickets when the network drops?
  • Can you split orders by station (grill, fryer, bar)?
  • How are refunds, voids and remakes tracked?

Payments and money

  • Which payment providers are supported in your country?
  • What are the transaction fees, chargeback rules and settlement times?
  • Does the system reconcile card, cash and delivery payments?
  • Can finance export data into accounting software?

Reliability

  • What continues working during an internet outage?
  • What is the provider's uptime history, and where is status published?
  • How quickly can you restore service, and who do you call?

Ask for the offline procedure in writing, then test it during a quiet service before you rely on it during a busy one.

Reporting and integrations

  • Can you see sales by item, channel, hour and location?
  • Does it integrate with delivery platforms, accounting and inventory?
  • Can you export raw data, or are you locked into reports?
  • Do multi-branch comparisons work without manual spreadsheets?

Contract and exit

  • What is the minimum term, and what happens if you close a site?
  • Are hardware, support and payment fees separate?
  • Who owns the menu and customer data?
  • What does migration away look like?

Total cost, not sticker price

Add subscription, hardware, installation, payment fees, integrations, support and the staff time to run the system. A cheaper subscription with poor reliability is expensive. A higher subscription that removes two hours of admin a day can pay for itself.

If you want to compare against our stack, start with Sum Cloud POS and SumBite, or read what a cloud POS is first.